Dragonkeeper
by actoratheart
Summary: What is Yugi to do when a mysterious duelist calling himself the Dragonkeeper appears and apparently wants him dead-- or at least defeated?
1. Default Chapter

Rian sat back with a sigh and a smile. He had perfected his deck. "The supreme strategy..." he whispered into the darkness. He had been working all night by flashlight to develop this deck; to incorporate his newest card...

The Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon.

The funny thing was he had inherited the Shining Dragon card from Seto Kaiba– the owner of the only copy of the Shining Dragon. He hadn't known Kaiba well, but Kaiba had watched Rian duel once or twice. Rian had gotten home after school the day before to find a note and an envelope on his deck. Strangely enough he couldn't remember much about the school day... but he forgot about the lack of memory completely when he discovered that the envelope contained three copies of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, and the most powerful dragon card he knew of: the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon. In numb shock he had read the note.

Dear Rian,

After the fatal accident involving my brother Mokuba, I have nothing to live for... I will end my life soon, but I trust no one to look after my most powerful cards. To my eyes, the only person whom I think has even a chance of defeating Yugi Moto in a duel– aided by my onslaught of Blue-Eyes, is you. Therefore, I leave you these five cards. Use them well.

– Particularly to achieve the defeat of Yugi Moto.

Farewell,

Seto Kaiba

Rian had accepted this without much hesitation, unquestioning of Kaiba's decision, both to commit suicide as well as the decision to give him the five Dragon cards. Now, aided by Rian's own specialization in dragons, Rian had the ultimate deck to use. There was no way he could lose, he thought.

The next morning he could do nothing but glare at Yugi at odd moments. Rian decided early on that he would not take on Yugi yet– he would wait, for one thing to watch Yugi and discern his strategy, but also to duel a few times with his deck, get used to the ins and outs of it. At lunch he spied out the dueling tables. He noticed with unconcerned curiosity that Yugi and his band of friends were not at those tables, but across the lunchroom, talking amongst themselves. _Oh well,_ he thought, _I can wait to crush Yugi._ Five minutes into the lunch hour he chose his target. He walked up to the kid nonchalantly. "Hey," he said to him. "Wanna duel later?" The kid looked up in surprise, then nodded. "Sure!" he said, a little too loudly. "Where?" Rian winced for a second from the kid's volume then crouched down. "You've got a duel disk still, right?" The kid nodded. "After school, meet me behind Room 23. Bring your duel disk and your deck. Winner will get the rarest card from the other's deck." The kid nodded again and repeated his instructions. "After school, behind Room 23. Bring the duel disk and my deck, loser loses his rarest card." As Rian started to go, the kid asked him, "Four thousand Life Points?" Rian nodded in reply and walked off to eat his lunch.

After school ended Rian made his way to the empty lot behind Room 23. As he came within five yards of the gate to the lot he took out his duel disk from his backpack and strapped it on. When he got inside the lot he pulled out his deck, shuffling it as he squared off with the kid. The two glared at each other as they shuffled, finally slipping the deck inside the duel disk. Before they powered up, though, the kid approached him. He extended his hand, saying, "I'm Miar. Pleasure to meet you."

Rian glared down at the kid, who stood at least four inches shorter. "I'm Rian. Let's just duel," he said, shaking hands stiffly with the boy. The boy shrugged and stepped back, powering up his disk. As the hologram projectors slid into place, the boy shouted across the lot, "Shall I go first?" Rian shouted back "Yes," and drew his starting cards. When he saw them he smirked. "Lord of Dragons, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Sonic Bird, Paladin of White Dragon, and Polymerization," he whispered to himself. "Perfect." To the boy –Miar– he cried, "Prepare to LOSE!" The boy took a step back in surprise.

"We'll just see about that..." he cried, sliding a card into the disk. "I'll play this monster face-down," he called. Rian laughed maniacally. Inside a part of him wondered what had come over him, but for the moment he didn't worry. Miar looked at him oddly and yelled, "Go ahead."

"All right," Rian shouted. He drew his card and grinned widely as he drew a Blue-Eyes. He laughed again and played his Sonic Bird. "This is the beginning of one of my best combos, Miar." "Huh?" The boy said.

"I summon the Sonic Bird, collecting from my deck the White Dragon Ritual. I then play the White Dragon Ritual, sacrificing my Sonic Bird to summon the Paladin of White Dragon. Then I use the Paladin's special ability to summon a particular monster from my deck."

The boy squinted at him in confusion. "What monster?"

"A monster that before now was only ever used by one man. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" As he spoke the giant dragon materialized before him, looming over Miar. The Dragon roared as the boy stuttered. "Th-th-the B-blue-Eyes?! How, how did you get it?!" Rian chuckled at his confusion but ignored his question. "Blue-Eyes, attack his face down monster! White Lightning!" The white fireball erupted from the dragon's mouth, decimating his face-down monster. Miar gasped and spluttered in shock as his card, a Prevent Rat, was blown away. Numbly Miar drew and placed another monster face down. Miar waved at Rian to take his turn, staring at the ground in shock. Rian drew, happily staring at the grinning face of the Pot of Greed. "I play Pot of Greed," he said to the mute boy, "and I draw..." He drew his two cards, smiling as he picked up his third Blue-Eyes and the Flute of Summoning Dragon. He looked at Miar over the tops of his cards and laughed maniacally again. "Ah," he said quietly to Miar, "Yet another of my great combos." The boy sighed.

"First, I summon the Lord of Dragons. I then play Flute of Summoning Dragon to special summon two dragons from my hand. And I choose to summon two more Blue-Eyes White Dragons!" Miar's gaze snapped to the two materializing dragons. "Y-you have _three_?! _How_?" Rian picked up a newspaper from his backpack. On the front page was a picture of Seto Kaiba hanging from a rope. "Seto Kaiba, CEO of KaibaCORP committed suicide last night," he read from the article. "He just did me a favor; gave me a gift." Miar's jaw dropped. "Blue-Eyes, annihilate his monster." One of his dragons attacked the monster, and he directed a second to attack directly. The white fireball blasted Miar's short body and he staggered back a pace. Miar stared at his counter in numb trauma as it counted down to show only a thousand Life Points remaining. "Go ahead," Rian said, crossing his arms. "Take your turn, what good it do you." Miar drew and placed one monster face-down again, all the while staring up at the three menacing dragons before him. He whispered, "Go ahead."

Rian laughed and drew. "YES!" he cried as he drew the one card he'd been building up to. He pointed at Miar across the lot. "Here is where it ends, Miar! First, I play the magic card Polymerization to fuse my three Blue-Eyes to form the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon." Miar dropped to his knees, whimpering as the Dragons were sucked into a vortex and reemerged as the three-headed giant.

"But I'm not finished Miar. Next I sacrifice my Ultimate Dragon..." Miar looked up in shock. "To summon the greatest Dragon known to duelists. The Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon!" The three-headed dragon reared back and roared, exploding into pixels. Within moments the dragon was replaced with the enormous silver-plated dragon– the pride of Rian's deck. When the dragon solidified, Rian ordered it forward.

"Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon! Attack Miar directly with your Shining Neutron Blast!" The electrified blast tore through Miar's body, and when the dust cleared, Miar lay back on the ground, nearing unconsciousness. Rian powered down his disk and approached Miar. He leaned over to look him in the face. "Your rarest card?" Miar reached up, handing him a trap card that Rian didn't look too closely at. "No one learns of this... right?" Miar nodded. Rian started to turn away, then stopped and looked back at Miar again. "Oh, and pleasure to beat you." He walked away smirking, stopping only to pick up his backpack and take one last look at Miar.

On his way home he heard whispers of the fiasco over Kaiba. Some praised him, and Rian smiled slightly at the sounds. Then he heard the end of the praising sentence: "thank goodness... that Kaiba's gone. He was such a jerk." Rian stopped in his tracks at that. _How can they say that?_ He thought. _He was kind to me, in fact he's done me a great service!_ He looked around for a moment, but couldn't identify any speakers, so he continued on home. As he walked on he looked at the trap card the kid had given him and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Bottomless Trap Hole?!" he cried out loud. Heads turned to face him and he swallowed. "Oh, hello," he said quietly, waving at them. "Sorry about that..."

Yugi sat at his desk, staring blankly at just under half-a-hundred Duel Monsters cards lying strewn over the desktop. Twenty years, and still most of life didn't make sense. A minute passed and to his non-surprise, none of the cards did anything remarkable. In frustration he laid his forehead down on the desk. He sighed. "How could this happen..?" he whispered to the Dark Magician, which by chance was right in his line of sight. When a finger tapped his shoulder he sat up ramrod in his chair. "Huh– wha–?" His eyes crossed as he stared up at a couple cards sticking to his forehead. With a sigh he pulled them off and put them down on the desk. He turned around to face the owner of the finger, and he stared into crimson eyes. "Hullo," he said. The man before him sat down on the bed. "What is wrong Yugi? You didn't even like Kaiba." Yugi sighed. "Maybe, but it just doesn't make sense. Why would he just go suicidal like that? What will happen to Mokuba?"

Yami sighed. "I don't know."

Yugi put his head in his hands. "Maybe we can find him?"

Yami sighed. "The last thing I expected to be doing was trying to do a favor for a Kaiba."

"Still, we ought to do something..." Yami stood as Yugi spoke, muttering into his palms. Yami nodded, though Yugi couldn't see it, and he put one hand on Yugi's shoulder. Yugi jolted at the sudden contact, and looked up gratefully at his doppelganger. Yami leaned down to whisper into Yugi's ear. "Can Mokuba wait, though? I had plans for tonight..." Yugi smiled in spite of himself. "Hmm.... sounds appealing... but I really think we should go find Mokuba."

Yami sighed, but complied, placing one hand on the front of Yugi's puzzle. A flash of light and a rush to Yugi's head and Yami was gone. Yugi ran his thumb over one side of the puzzle as he regained his breath. He sighed and left the room, leaving the Game Shop and wandering down the city streets, looking for the KaibaCORP headquarters.

Rian chuckled. Replace one card, and the strategy changed. _I didn't think my deck could get better, and yet... now with the Bottomless Trap Hole I got from Miar, I'm UNSTOPPABLE!_ He laughed as he sifted through his deck for the fifth time.

Over the course of the next two weeks, he dueled nine more times, never messing with Yugi. He won every time– needless to say. Only two times out of the ten duels he _didn't_ get his Shining Dragon on the field. Some duels he got good cards, some he didn't. But none of the duels ended with him changing his deck as he did with the trap from Miar. And each time he made sure no one got wind of his key cards.

When Yugi reached KaibaCORP, he stared up seventeen stories. "Wow..." he said to himself. He entered the building and asked the man at the desk if he could speak to Mokuba. The man had gaped for a minute and a half before giving him directions. As Yugi started to walk away, the man said to him, "Y'know, you seem taller on TV." Yugi looked back and flashed the man a smile before continuing upstairs. Once out of earshot he sighed. The number of times he had been told that was starting to get just way too high. Of course, there was no way to explain to people that during duels he grew about six inches due to an alter-ego assuming control of his body. He could only imagine how incredibly fast he would be locked up.

He held a brief discussion with Yami as he climbed the stairs to the eighth floor.

_Are you sure this is a good idea, Yugi?_

_Why not?_

_I have a bad feeling that this won't end very well._

Yugi sighed in frustration. When he reached the eighth floor he took two lefts, a right, and another left. He knocked on the door he now faced. He ran one hand through his hair and waited. "Go away!"

_Huh?_

"Mokuba?"

"Go away!"

"Mokuba, it's Yugi Moto!"

After a moment Yugi heard a click and the door slid open an inch. "Yugi?"

Yugi smiled. "Can I come in?"

Mokuba sniffed and took Yugi's wrist, pulling him inside and having him sit down inside the room. Yugi almost immediately crossed his legs under him, sitting tailor style. Mokuba wasn't facing him, instead he was at a desk, kneeling in front of it almost like it was an altar. Yugi looked up at him in surprise before going over to him. As he approached Mokuba hung his head. He bowed down to the floor, covering his head with his arms. In shaking hands Mokuba held a picture. Yugi picked up the frame in his slender hands and examined the picture.

_It must be them... years and years ago..._

Yami nodded– although how Yugi knew it he had no guess. Something that blew Yugi away, though, was that Seto was actually _smiling_. He had _never_ seen Kaiba smile.

A strange sound interrupted his thoughts and Yugi scanned the room for the source, only to discover that it was Mokuba. He kneeled next to him, setting aside the picture. A low muttering reached his ears and he leaned in close.

"What am I gonna do? He– he promised he'd never leave me... what do I have left?"

_He... he promised._ Yami's voice sounded harsh in his mind. _He promised Mokuba he'd never leave. If there's one thing we've learned about Kaiba, it's that he doesn't forsake his family._ Yugi nodded mentally. _That settles it. Something's wrong._

"Mokuba? What's the last thing you knew of Kai– Seto?"

Mokuba stopped sobbing and wiped his eyes. "I dunno... He was leaving for something... Going out to meet someone..."

Yugi felt the change before it began. Slowly Yami emerged, only somewhat. "Where was he going... Mokuba, try to remember. This is very important."

He sniffed, and Yugi waited as he concentrated. "I think he said... he was gonna meet one of his–your classmates, but I don't think he said which one. And then he never came back..."

"I smell a rat..." Yami growled.

"What're you gonna do?" Mokuba asked, looking up hopefully at Yami. Yugi melted, and Yami retreated. Yugi sighed. "I don't know yet, Mokuba. But I'll let you know when I figure it out." His gaze drifted up, past Mokuba's head. "I find it very difficult to believe that Seto would just commit suicide, for no apparent reason..." He looked back at Mokuba. "But I'll figure it out."

Yugi sighed as they walked home. Against Yami's wishes, Yugi had offered for Mokuba to come home with him and spend the night. Also against Yami's wish, Mokuba accepted. When the two got back to the game shop, Yugi set Mokuba up in a spare bedroom near his. It was already late, so his grandfather was asleep already. Mokuba went to sleep quickly and Yugi sat up in bed, leaning against a couple pillows. He sighed.

_I don't understand it. Kaiba wouldn't do something like that..._

He lay down on the bed finally, arms crossed behind his head. He tucked himself under the sheets, wearing only a pair of pajama pants. He sighed, finally drifting off to sleep– and into his dreamworld of the puzzle.

Yami found him sitting on one of the sets of stairs, his legs dangling over the edge. Yami hopped up next to him, sitting next to him, one arm wrapped around him. With a grateful sigh Yugi lay his head on Yami's shoulder. Yami decided to ignore all the annoyed questions he was burning to ask his lighter half. Instead he groaned and pulled Yugi closer.

_I just don't get it. Why would Kaiba make such a decision?_

_I don't know. This is all very strange. And it's happening so quickly._

Yugi nodded in agreement and pulled his knees up to his chest.

_What do you plan to do about Mokuba?_

Yugi looked up at Yami's impassive face, guessing that there was more to that comment; that Yami really was not happy that Mokuba was their new roommate.

_I don't know. I really don't know. Huh?_

_What is it?_

_I don't know... I felt something... just a second._

Yugi shook himself from the dream, only with great effort keeping perfectly still in reality. He looked to his left, where he had felt the something. He almost shrieked in surprise as where nothing had been when he had fallen asleep was a small person with black hair. When he realized who it was Yugi almost cried of relief. He noted with interest that Mokuba had wrapped Yugi's arm around himself before lying down. Yugi smiled at the sight and rejoined Yami.

_It's Mokuba_, he explained when he was in the all-too-familiar puzzle, looking into Yami's blood-red eyes.

_Mokuba?_

_Yes, he's lying right next to me._

_I have to wonder how often he's done that with Seto._

_I only wonder if Seto allows it. And if Mokuba realizes it's me, and not his dear brother._

Yami growled in his throat and scooched Yugi into the crook of his arm again. Leaning back against a wall Yami relaxed, Yugi's head on his chest. As Yugi started to doze, Yami leaned over and kissed him lightly on the forehead. In his half-asleep state Yugi smiled and fidgeted, trying to find the most comfortable position.

Yugi woke first. When the sunlight fell on his face he fidgeted, blocking the sunlight from his eyes. He groaned and sat up, only at the last moment remembering who was with him and avoiding waking the small boy. He got up and had just finished dressing for school when Mokuba woke up. He sat up rubbing his eyes and looked around the room. On his second pass he became slightly frantic.

"Huh– what? Where am I?"

Yugi knelt by the bed.

"Mokuba, don't you remember? You came home with me last night."

He nodded. "That I remember... but– did I come in here during the night?"

Yugi chuckled and nodded. "C'mon, we gotta get you back to KaibaCORP."

Mokuba nodded and stood.

On his way to school Yugi dropped Mokuba off at the KaibaCORP building. "Mokuba, if you want to come back to my house tonight you're welcome to– but either way I'll get you news as soon as I can." Mokuba nodded before disappearing indoors.

Little more than two weeks passed without any news. Then Yugi heard strange news. One of his classmates had vanished. At the same time, a supposed pro duelist had surfaced. "He calls himself the Dragonkeeper." Joey explained on their way to lunch. "He's been massacring local students for two weeks with these mystery dragon cards." Joey's face contorted to anger. "Whoever it is, we'll crush him, right Yug'?" Yugi nodded blankly. When he got his lunch he walked over to the dueling tables.

"Hey," he called. "Anyone here know anything about this Dragonkeeper?"

All around the tables heads were shaking. Except one. A small stuttering boy whose body shook violently at odd intervals crept up to him and whispered into his ear. "M-Meet m-me behind R-Room 23 after s-school and I'll t-tell you what you n-need to know Y-Yugi."

As he walked back to his friends Yami spoke up.

_Hmm._

_I know what you mean._

_This is very strange..._

Yugi nodded as he approached Joey Serenity, Tea and Tristan.

"Yugi?"

"What?"

"Who are you nodding to?"

A slight blush crept to his cheeks. "Um, no one," he mumbled, rubbing one side of the puzzle with the tip of one finger.

It was the third day Rian hadn't been in school. The strange thing was that he had vague memories of being there... and yet messages were being sent to his parents that he hadn't been at school. He also found a round crystal and chain in his desk drawer and a long black cloak he didn't remember owning. He found drawings of dragons all over the floor of his room... but he didn't recall drawing any of them. That evening found him sitting on his bed, staring at the most recently found drawing. This one wasn't solely a dragon. It was a Blue-Eyes... but this one had Seto Kaiba in the foreground. He was looking smug.

In frustration he slammed the picture down on the floor by his bed. He put his head in his hands and scowled at the floor.

_Hey, look down._

Rian stood up in shock. "Who are you? Where are you?"

_I'm you... I'm in you._

"NO!"

_Rian, look down at the floor. Next to your duel disk. Pick up the paper._

He did, and he found yet another picture on the floor. This one didn't have any dragons at all... only Kaiba. He scanned the whole page before throwing it down in fear. This one had Kaiba holding a rope–a noose. Even worse, he was staring at the rope not in want– but in anger. And then Rian noticed the second figure. It was a rear view of the second person, but he was holding a gun on Kaiba, and he had what appeared to be chin-length red hair. In a panic Rian reached up and checked his own hair color, something he had never really worried about before now. It was red.

Rian's parents raced to the door of his room when they heard his scream. They hammered on the door, but it was locked.

"Rian! Open the door!"

"NO! NO! THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! I COULDN'T HAVE–"

His father pounded the door. "What's impossible?!" He shouted. Rian's parents gasped at the sound of crashing glass. Rian's father finally pried the door open, to find that Rian's window had been smashed, his beloved duel disk and deck were gone.

And Rian was nowhere to be seen.

Yugi met the boy after school behind Room 23. He was astonished to find an empty lot. "Hello?" he cried out.

_He will not show up._

_Yes he will, Yami, just give him a couple minutes._

Yugi was right, within a few minutes the small shaking boy from lunch staggered into the lot.

"Greetings, Y-Yugi."

"Hullo."

_Let me handle this..._

_All right._

As the boy stopped to de-snag his pant leg he missed the soft glow of golden light that came from the small duelist he had come to meet. When he stood up again to face Yugi he did not notice the drastic change in height, instead he just stuck with what he had planned to do.

"Y-You seek the D-Dragonkeeper? I was the first to duel him– but by his old name."

"Tell me who the Dragonkeeper is."

"That I c-cannot do. When the Dragonkeeper beat me, he made me promise not to identify him to anyone, n-nor to t-tell any of the cards that are essential to his strategy.

"I s-should warn you, Y-Yugi, he is coming for you. And he holds cards that only have b-been ever held by one man... s-someone you knew w-well.

He will c-come for you– eventually. And when the Dragonkeeper deems the time right and opens the g-gates of hell and heaven to destroy you... I only hope you've used my clues well and are ready f-for the attacks of light you s-shall b-behold."

And the boy walked away, skirting the gate where he had been snagged before.

Before Yami retreated again he growled in frustration. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?!"

_I don't know... but I have a feeling the days of relaxation are over._

_Did they ever begin?_

Rian had begun to gain his memories– the ones he had been missing for so long. It seemed that for each lapse he had before, he now was having a dream to remember what had happened. For instance, he discovered that he had robbed a handful of stores at gunpoint to buy money for cards. But he didn't understand why he couldn't remember them in the first place!

The most important dream, to his eyes, was the one involving Seto Kaiba. He now understood the truth about the suicide.

_Rian stood in an elevator, going up to the seventeenth story. When there he wandered around, finally finding Kaiba. "Hey, buddy," he called. Seto looked at him and flashed the closest thing to a smile he could give. "Just a minute," he called back. "Just gotta get this in order." Rian sat down on a bench and nodded. "'Kay." After a couple minutes Seto wandered over to him. "Hey, c'mon. Let's go." The two of them rode the elevator down to the ground floor and left the building. Rian glanced over at Seto, noting with interest that he was wearing an outfit similar to the one he had worn at Battle City: black pants and white shirt, and he still wore the white cloak embroidered with 'KC.' After a moment Rian noticed a deck clipped to Seto's belt. He pointed at it, asking, "Do you take that everywhere?" Seto glanced down and fingered one of the corners. "Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?" Rian shrugged. "Just asking." Rian led them into a dark alleyway._

"_Hey, Seto?"_

"_What?"_

"_You still got that Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon?"_

"_Sure, why?"_

"_Oh, no reason."_

_Seto turned away for something Rian couldn't see and didn't care about. In a fluid move he pulled out a noose he had knotted before leaving home and wrapped it around Seto's neck, looping the end of the rope around a beam overhead. Rian stepped around in front of Seto and watched disinterestedly as he clawed at the rope biting into his neck as his face started to go different colors. "Why, Rian?" he asked. As he started to go blue his attempts at getting free became weaker. Minutes passed and he was dead. Rian sifted through his deck, removing the three Blue-Eyes and the Shining Dragon. He chuckled as he walked home and wrote a fake suicide note from Kaiba and slipped the cards into an envelope. He set them on the desk and then left the room._

When Rian 'viewed' this memory, he was appalled. The thought that he could –and did– such a thing shocked him. And yet– there was a feeling, a rush, that he had felt when he was in the thick of the events. It was like a drug, it was short-lived and addicting. He needed more. He eventually decided the best way to do such a thing was to duel. So he took advantage of the strange objects he had found in his room. He snuck back into his room and took the cloak and the crystal. He also nabbed some materials he would need. For the next thing he needed was a dragon-type helmet. When he completed it he reveled in its beauty. It was a lot like a Blue-Eyes' head, but it had aspects of a number of other dragons like the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Curse of Dragon. The crystal he dubbed the Dragonstar and he wore it around his neck whenever in his Dragonkeeper disguise.

Mokuba hadn't intended to go back to the Kame Game Shop that evening, but something drew him there, and about seven o' clock in the evening he found himself on the shop's back doorstep, holding up the collar of his jacket to keep out the chill and the rain. Yugi's grandfather answered the door.

"Hullo?"

"Mr. Moto?" The man smiled kindly. "Mokuba! Yugi's been expecting you. He's in his room." As Mokuba walked inside he asked, "He's been expecting me?" He nodded, "Hai."

When Mokuba reached Yugi's upstairs room, he heard voices and stayed outside for a moment to listen in. Eavesdropping may not be polite, but this was one weird conversation.

"No news. No news! Not about Kaiba, not even about this Dragonkeeper!" That voice Mokuba recognized as Yugi's. The next, though, was strange to him. It was deep and rough, but faintly similar to Yugi's voice.

"This is getting out of hand, Yugi. We need to take action. If this Dragonkeeper is trying to make a name for himself, eventually he'll come after us."

_Us?_ Mokuba thought.

"Maybe, but how are we going to find him? We don't even know who he is!"

"That may be true, but perhaps the appearance of the Dragonkeeper is linked to the disappearance of your classmate– perhaps even to Kaiba's death."

"Hmm. Maybe..."

"Who's missing from your class?"

"Well, Rian is in an exchange program or something..."

"Where?"

"I'm not sure, actually. I don't think anyone knows."

"Sounds suspicious to me."

"True... what was that?"

As Mokuba leaned against the door to hear better, he gasped. The door clicked and swung open. What Mokuba didn't see was Yami hiding in a corner. Yugi looked down at him as he fell over the threshold of the room.

"H-Hi."

"Hi, Mokuba." Yugi glanced into one corner of the room before picking up Mokuba and helping him inside. "I had a feeling you were coming..." Mokuba looked around in confusion. "Where's the other guy?" Standing behind Mokuba, Yugi's face went dead white. "W-What other guy?" "I heard another person in here, I'm sure of it!" "O-Oh, th-that... um."

To Yugi's _great_ surprise Yami stepped out of his hiding place.

"It's okay, Yugi. It's about time we told _some_body." Mokuba's jaw dropped. "W-Who is that?!"

"Mokuba, this is my– um– friend, Yami." He kneeled down to face Mokuba on eye level. "What I'm going to tell you will seem utterly ridiculous, but you have to just believe me. Please?" Mokuba nodded.

"Yami is an ancient Egyptian pharaoh whose soul was sealed into my Millennium Puzzle." He lifted up the puzzle to emphasize. "A few years ago I put together the puzzle and released him, and since then we've worked together and dueled together."

As he spoke Yami put one hand on his back, rubbing it slightly and giving him the courage to continue. "Together we've faced a lot– Pegasus, your brother, Marik, and even the ancient Egyptian sorcerer Anubis. You remember the incident with the Pyramid of Light?" When Mokuba nodded he continued. "Yeah, that was Anubis' doing. Anyway, That's why sometimes I look taller and sound different."

Yami nodded, saying, "That's right."

Mokuba said nothing for long minutes. When he finally did speak, he whispered, "You tried to tell us... Seto and me. You did– in the chopper years and years ago... but Seto wouldn't listen. And he told you not to keep telling me such stories." He looked up. "But now I understand. It wasn't just a story... it's true." He quieted for a moment, deep in thought. "But why are you telling me all this anyway?"

Yugi looked up at Yami. "That's a good question... Yami?" Yami sighed and answered. "Because we –that is I– felt that somebody ought to know, plus I feel that something like this will give you something to do and think about besides your brother." Mokuba hung his head. "Right..." he whispered. "This is just so bizarre. If I didn't have the visual evidence I wouldn't believe it." Yami chuckled. "You sound like Seto." He looked up. "I do?" The two almost-twins nodded in unison and Mokuba giggled at the sight.

Rian drew a card and smiled evilly. "I'll use Polymerization to fuse my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons together to form the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon!" He chuckled, feeling that familiar rush of adrenaline that he loved. "Then I sacrifice the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon for my ultimate monster: the Blue-Eyes SHINING DRAGON!" The all-powerful dragon materialized before him and his victim paled to a shade of bright ivory. "MY DRAGON! ATTACK HIM DIRECTLY!" Rian laughed so hard his sides started to hurt as the boy he had challenged keeled over, his rarest card held loosely in one hand.

Rian walked over and plucked the card from its former owner's lifeless fingers. "I'll take that..." he said, pocketing it. _Wait a minute..._ he thought. _Lifeless?_ He looked over again at the boy's face.

A red liquid trickled from the corner of the boy's mouth. _Oh my god! _He reached over and traced one finger over the boy's mouth, then looked at his fingertip. _Oh my god! It's blood! How did that happen?_ He placed his fingers at the boys wrist, searching for a pulse. _Nothing!_ He tried the boys neck. _Nothing! Not a beat! Oh my god! Did I kill him?_

_Oh please. A Duel Monsters card can't kill a person._

_But– but– he's dead!_

_I said a card can't kill a person... I never said I couldn't._

_What?!_

_Hey, hey. I didn't kill him, per se. It's your beloved Dragonstar. It's making your dragons more real than you –or Kaiba– ever thought possible._

_NO! I–I–I...._

Rian squeezed his eyes shut. He stood up and turned away from the boy.

_Don't go stuttering at me. And don't you dare tell me you didn't enjoy it._

_I-I– I did... but, no! You can't make this something..._

_You enjoyed it. Say it. SAY IT!_

_AUGH! I ENJOYED IT– I ENJOYED KILLING THAT BOY!_

_What will we do next then?_

When the voice in his head asked this question his eyes snapped open, their normally blue color tinted with black. When he spoke his voice was deep and gravelly, very unlike the soft vocals he normally had. "Yuuuuuu–gi..." he growled.

Yugi was pressed against the wall, every nerve on edge. His entire attention was focused on one thing: every place their bodies were crushed together. Lips, breasts, thighs, even their hands. At least, Yugi's wrists were pinned against the wall by the man's hands. As Yami deepened the kiss Yugi moaned in ecstacy. He couldn't put into words how much he had missed this. Within the fog cloaking his mind he couldn't feel the buttons of his shirt disconnecting from their fabric prison.

THUNK, THUNK

Yami broke away and growled in frustration. _What was that?_

Yugi giggled at the utterly exasperated tone Yami was using through their link as his face went slightly pink.

_The door. Somebody's knocking._

Yami sighed and stepped back. He looked down a couple inches and smiled. _You might want to do something about that though..._ he said, pointing at Yugi's shirt. _Right_, Yugi giggled, yanking his jacket on and holding it shut before opening the door. "Mokuba?"

Mokuba went pink and fidgeted on the doorjamb. "Sorry to bother you, Yugi. But I found this note under the door."

"Thanks, Mokuba." Yugi took the note in his hand and watched Mokuba walk back into his room. Yugi turned back into the room and closed the door, sliding off the jacket and flopping onto his bed.

"This is odd," he said quietly as he scanned the note. "Here, see what you make of it."

Yami took the note and examined it, one hand trying to unbutton his shirt.

yugi,

you have something i neeD. i am veRy upset with you. you Are the cause of my problems. i need revenGe. therefOre, i require for you to meet me behiNd room 23 tuesday, four weeKs from now. i nEEd to sPEak to you about some things. i need to defeat you in a duel. for his sake. be theRe.

Yami looked up when he finished reading it. "This is really strange." He handed it back to Yugi. "What are all the capital letters for?" Yugi examined the page again. "I didn't notice those before... hmm." He stood and went to his desk, taking out paper and a pencil. What Yugi didn't notice was Yami's stifled moan at his still halfway removed shirt. Yugi sat and copied down each capital letter in sequence.

"D, R, A, G, O, N, K, E, E, P, E, R."

Yami began to pace slightly, thinking aloud. "Now we just have to figure out if there's a code or something."

"Yami..."

"Secret meaning behind the letters..."

"Yami!"

"Acronym, perhaps..."

"Yami!"

"What?!"

"Look." He held up the paper, on which was clearly spelled out 'DRAGONKEEPER.'

Yami sat down hard on the bed. "Oh... well, at least now we don't have to worry about finding him."

Yugi smiled grimly. "Yeah, I guess."

Yami smiled rather seductively and stood, practically towering over Yugi, still sitting on his desk chair. "We can worry about him later though, right? Can we finish what we were doing?"

To Yami's satisfaction Yugi's face went about three different shades of red and he smiled, before setting down the note and his slip of paper and stood.

Now Rian couldn't go home. Instead he lived in the park, often perching in the tree branches. One such night he was perched in a willow, nestled among the branches. As a chill breeze blew by he wrapped himself up in his cloak, his helmet hanging near his head, his Dragonstar clutched in one hand. That night Rian soon recovered the most disturbing and the first of his memory lapses.

_Rian was walking home after school. As he walked past the back of Room 23 a voice called out to him._

_Hey... Rian!_

_What in the name of...?_

_Rian! Look in the grass two and a half feet to your left and forward six inches._

_What? He thought._

_He had done as the voice requested, and there he found a round crystal on a silver chain._

_What in the name of...? he thought again. All the same, he tucked it into his pocket and continued home._

At that moment Rian sat up with a start, almost falling out of the tree. _What in the name of every god in **Ancient Egypt** was that all about?_ He curled back up and clutched the Dragonstar again, only after eyeing it in confusion. _Oh well..._


	2. Realizations

The next day after school Yugi raced home. Thoroughly exhausted after the day and the run, he plopped down on his desk chair and pulled out his schoolbooks. Once all three books he needed were before him, he stared at them blankly. He sighed and picked up a piece of paper, intending to start writing an essay. He noticed, slightly annoyed, that the paper wasn't lined. Still, his hand holding the pencil drifted to the page and began to draw. He worked furiously for a half hour, drawing, erasing and drawing again. After he was satisfied, he worked for another quarter hour coloring it in, shading it properly. When he was finally finished he taped it up against his desk and with a sigh started his homework.

_What is this?_

Yugi jumped and turned around. "Yami! I didn't hear you come in!"

_I know..._ He looked at the picture closely. "I ask again: What is this?"

Yugi looked at it again, as though with new eyes. "I don't know... I practically don't remember drawing it!"

Yami surveyed the picture again. "It is good though, his black cloak wraps around him well– and the helmet is an interesting touch. It reminds me of the Blue-Eyes, with a couple other dragon type monsters thrown in."

Yugi looked up from his books, his proud smile quickly replaced by a mix of horror and realization. "Did you say _dragon_-type?"

"Yes, why?"

"That must be the Dragonkeeper!"

"But how do you know what he looks like?"

"I don't know– but I don't. His helmet hides his face."

"True..." Yami's gaze fixed on a round crystal hanging around the Dragonkeeper's neck by a silver chain. "I only have one more question. _What is that_?" His finger pointed shakily at the crystal and Yugi stared at it. He had never heard Yami use that tone before... and it scared him.

"I don't know... it just sort of drew itself there."

"If that is what I think it is," he whispered, "then things are much more serious than we thought." Yugi stared at the picture in horror. "What do you think it is?" he whispered back.

"I think... that crystal is the Formless Reality Crystal of Suez."

"The Formless Reality Crystal? What's that?"

"When it chooses a duelist slave, it takes that person's favorite type and makes them real in duels. If the Dragonkeeper does have the Formless Reality Crystal of Suez... then best-case he might kill someone he duels..." Yami trailed off into silence.

"Wait, 'best-case'? What's worst-case?"

"Worst-case... the dragons resist his orders and wreak havoc on the world. The Crystal of Suez holds an ancient spirit bent on destruction. I don't know a lot about it, it was before my time."

The two fell into deep silence for long minutes. Finally Yugi spoke up. "We really need to find out what happened to Rian. If it turns out we're wrong and Rian's safe, then the Dragonkeeper is someone we don't know."

"True. But for now, you really need to finish your schoolwork..." Yami pointed at the books still on the desk. "I guess I'll leave you to it." He left the room, Yugi turning back to the books with an annoyed sigh.

Over the next week Yugi asked everyone he knew about Rian, but no one could tell him anything. He finally decided to visit Rian's house and ask Rian's parents what they knew. If there was anyone who could give him some clues about Rian's whereabouts, surely it would be them?

Mokuba had decided to accompany him, and when they got to the house and rang the doorbell, Mokuba fidgeted while they waited.

"What if they don't know anything either?"

"It'll be fine, Mokuba. Trust me."

At that moment the door creaked open a crack. "Hello?" came a whisper.

Yugi leaned in close to the door to answer. "Good evening. I'm Yugi Moto– I go to your son's school. Could I talk to you for a little while?" The person behind the door nodded stiffly and opened the door the rest of the way. The two boys entered, looking around in curiosity.

The person outside was now revealed to be a bent, gnarled old man. "What do you need to know? I assume you want to know where Rian is. Am I right?" Yugi stared in shock. "Y-yes," he spluttered.

"Well... I don't know what I can tell you," Yugi sighed. "But I can show you something you might find interesting, I don't know."

Yugi and Mokuba both nodded and the old man led them back to what appeared to be the door of a bedroom. "This used to be Rian's room. But he hasn't been back home for about a month!"

Yugi stopped dead and looked at the man, violet eyes wide. "You mean, you _don't_ know where he is? He isn't in an exchange program or anything?" The man shook his head. "No. He disappeared one night. My wife and I had raced to his door when we heard him scream, but the door was locked. By the time we got the door open, the window was smashed and he was gone, along with his dueling disk and his deck."

"Huh."

"What is it Yugi?" Mokuba asked.

"That's interesting. Would you mind if we took a look around?"

"Go ahead." The man opened the door and left.

When the two boys entered the room, they found it in a state of chaos. It almost looked like Rian had been fighting with someone in the room before he left. The desk was knocked over, a lamp was broken, small crashed objects were strewn everywhere. The most common thing they discovered, however, was drawings. Some were normal– as far as them being depictions of Duel Monsters. Some weren't. For instance, one picture depicted Seto Kaiba in the foreground standing in front of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon with a smug look. Others depicted the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon demolishing other monsters, most commonly Egyptian God cards. However, Yugi had picked up a potentially particularly disturbing picture when Mokuba interrupted him. "Look," he whispered, handing Yugi a picture. Yugi eyed it for only a moment before nearly dropping it. It was a red-haired boy holding a gun on Seto Kaiba, who was holding what appeared to be a noose. "And look at this..." Mokuba whispered after a moment, handing Yugi a framed picture –whose glass cover had been cracked– of Rian holding up his deck and duel disk in triumph, a Duel Monsters Tournament Finals poster behind him.

Rian, Yugi noticed, had red hair.

With a grim smile and a comforting hug for Mokuba he looked again at the picture he had just picked up. It was yet another drawing, this time of Rian holding in his right hand a blueprint of some sort of elaborate helmet, a black cloak pinned at his neck and flaring out around his legs. Yugi painfully recognized it as the cloak he had drawn on the Dragonkeeper; it had a silver pin on the lapel in the shape of a claw. The other hand was raised triumphantly over his head, a duel disk strapped to his arm and holding his deck. In his hand was the Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon card, and the way his arm was held Yugi could see that his only monster 'on the field' was the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Most disturbing, however, was the round crystal hanging around Rian's neck by a silver chain.

That night Mokuba had to return to KaibaCORP, so Yugi trudged home carrying a small stack of pictures. When he finally trudged through the door of the Game Shop he looked around dully. He noticed Yami was cleaning up so he switched the OPEN sign to CLOSED. He trudged upstairs calling out, "Grampa?! Grampa!" A quiet shout drifted up to him.

"He's at a convention, remember?!"

Yugi leaned over the railing to look down at Yami. "Oh yeah," he giggled. "I forgot." He started to turn away, but then whisked back to the edge. "When you're finished I have some things to show you. Yami looked up, confusion thick in their link.

_Really?_

_I think you'll find it interesting. If not scary._

_I don't like the sound of that..._

_No, you prob'ly won't._

Yami felt Yugi's grim apprehension roll down the link in a wave. Yami shuddered at the feeling. The few times he had felt such a feeling from Yugi the results had not been pretty. Yami sighed and finished closing up before heading upstairs.

When he got to Yugi's bedroom he entered quietly. Yugi was nearly falling asleep as he sat on his bed, the pictures he had taken from Rian's room spread over the bed before him. Yami sat down beside him, putting one arm halfway around him and rubbing his back with a soothing, comforting hand. Yugi sighed in relief.

They sat this way for a while. Without warning to Yugi Yami's movements became jerky and stilted as he realized what some of the drawings meant, namely the connection between the picture of Rian at the tournament and the drawing of Rian threatening Kaiba. When Yami looked out the window across the room Yugi sighed.

_There's one more..._ he began quietly.

Yami swallowed and nodded, signaling to show him. Yugi pulled out the drawing of Rian with the cloak, the duel disk, the two cards and the crystal. Yami looked over it numbly. He did not notice the crystal at first.

_Huh._

_Did you see...?_ Yugi asked, confused. He had expected more of a reaction than that.

_What? _Yugi pointed at the crystal.

Yami's breath caught in his throat. He made a bizarre noise, like a cross between a growl, a gasp and a whine. Yugi quivered at the strange noise he made as Yami began to shake.

_No-no-no-no-no-no-no-_ Yami whispered repeatedly into the link. As it reached the force of a mantra Yugi shook him.

_Yami, what is it? Tell me!_ Yugi looked up into scarlet eyes and tried to draw the taller one's gaze as his concern and love filled his own scarlet ones. Yami dropped the drawing and numbly shuffled through the first stack of drawings, taking the picture at the tournament.

_Look_, he whispered. He pointed at the eyes of each Rian with trembling fingers. Yugi looked down reluctantly, hesitantly breaking his attempted gaze. He studied the two pictures, finally guessing that what had Yami all worked up was that in the picture Rian's eyes were the same sapphire color as his beloved dragons. But in the drawing... in the drawing they were black, faintly tinted with blue. They were also about twice the size in the drawing than in the picture.

_The color– and the size– there's something important about that... I know there is. But I can't remember!_

Yami's fear seemed like a dark shroud wrapped around their link.

_It means that he is being possessed by the crystal's spirit, confirming without a doubt that the crystal he bears **is** the Formless Reality Crystal of Suez. You might recall that when Marik possessed Joey, Joey's eyes were large and solid gold in color. Very different than normal, wouldn't you say? Yugi... this is a problem. If you look very closely at the crystal, you will see reflected in its surface Rian's face. It is Rian– and he's not sad or angry at what's going on. He's smiling. _Yugi examined the drawing as Yami spoke. _He is doing this. Even if it didn't start that way, he is cooperating now. This will make the eradication of the spirit and the crystal very, very difficult._

Yugi swallowed.

_Yugi... I don't know what we can do for him._

Yugi looked up at Yami in horror. Crimson and amethyst eyes locked together as Yami let out his held breath in a light hiss.

_I don't know if we can even get rid of the Dragonkeeper without getting rid of Rian as well. Rian may be doomed. _He paused. _If he's not already lost to us._

Their gaze still locked, one pair of amethyst eyes widened.

The next few days passed in a blur, the fateful day of the duel finally approaching. Yugi left the house in the morning after a brief conversation with his grandfather. Yami still had no idea what they could do for Rian, so they left the house armed only with truth and Yugi's deck. As Yugi walked down the street approaching Joey's house, his thoughts drifted to the morning's conversation.

"_Yugi," his grandfather said, "Next week I'll be flying out to Egypt, in the Suez region. Would you like to come along?" Yugi had been deep in thought, and merely replied, "Sure. When is it again?" The man nodded his head in gratitude and answered, "Next week. We'll be gone for four days." "'Kay," Yugi had mumbled as he trudged out the door, hoping to meet up with Joey on the way to school._

Just as he started up the front walk to Joey's house he heard shouting from inside. He couldn't quite hear or understand, but in seconds Joey came pelting out the door and down the walk like a bat out of hell. As Joey breezed past him Yugi cleared his throat. Joey saw him and whipped back to look at the door. Something he saw apparently bothered him cuz he grabbed Yugi by the scruff of the neck and yanked him around the hedge of his neighbor's yard. Yugi gasped for breath as what sounded like glass smashed into the sidewalk where he'd been standing like a bombshell. "What was that?!" he breathed. Joey chuckled nervously and said, "Nuthin'. C'mon," and began to walk to school. Yugi shrugged and tore after him, practically needing two steps to match Joey's one. "So how've things been in your world Yug'?" Yugi sighed, making a split second decision not to bring Joey into this Dragonkeeper business. "Oh, nothing much..." he mumbled. "You?" Joey looked back for a moment in the direction of his house before saying, "Nuthin', really."

By the time they got to school Yugi was really getting nervous about the duel that afternoon. But he supposed that it would be all right and that he and Yami would get by just like they always did. Yugi's classes that day seemed to crawl by at a pace never before imagined. Each of his classes seemed more boring than ever. Lunch was a blur, and the last classes of the day were a slog. Finally afternoon came and he raced out to the back lot behind Room 23. As he ran he hurriedly strapped on the duel disk he still retained, pulling out his deck from the pouch on his belt and holding it in one hand. As he ran Yami took control, his stride lengthening as he approached the lot. When he arrived at the gate, he found a cloaked figure sitting on the top of the fence, his face hidden by a long helmet, identical to the one Yugi had drawn unknowingly and the blueprint the drawn Rian had held. He was wrapped in the black cloak, and from around his neck a bright light filtered through the dark folds of cloth.

"Dragonkeeper!" Yami called in frustration.

"Ah, Yugi. So glad you could make it." Mentally Yugi took a figurative step back. Rian's voice had deepened drastically, to the point that it was a haggard gravelly rumble. The once kind and energetic vocals were now laced with long festering hatred. He jumped down before the gate, not more than three yards from Yami. Now Yami could see that the once healthy young man was gaunt and thin, his back bent like a willow branch. To the untrained eye it merely seemed he had bad posture– but to Yami he clearly could see that the Formless Reality Crystal was weighing him down.

The Dragonkeeper spoke, taunting Yami as he checked his watch. "You're late Yugi. I would have expected you to be on time. Punctuality is the mark of professionalism after all. How can one become King of Games with such bad timing? I would think that the great rival of Seto Kaiba could be courteous enough to be on time..." Yami cut him off then, accusing him. "You killed Kaiba, didn't you?" The Dragonkeeper stopped talking, pausing for a long second before sighing. "Yes, I did. What is it to you? You hated him, and he hated you." Yami shook with rage, now voicing Yugi's protests. "We may have disliked each other but that doesn't take highest priority! What about Mokuba? Did you think what would happen to him?" The Dragonkeeper took a step forwards threateningly. Even though his face was hidden Yami could tell he was glaring daggers at them.

"A thirteen year old boy holds no concern for me!" He snapped.

"He should! Kaiba was everything to Mokuba, and you took that away from him! How could you?"

The cloaked man snorted.

Yugi then played a card that not one of them expected. "Rian, how could you?" he said quietly. Rian went silent. A moment passed between them, Yami and Yugi waiting for his response barely patiently, and Rian dead silent. After what seemed a quarter of an hour he growled. Without warning Rian's head snapped back, his eyes wide, filled with an emotion neither of the two could name. He roared, and on the side of his neck a black X began to burn in his skin, spreading to form two parallel bands that wrapped around Rian's neck. The next time he spoke, his voice was even darker than before, something Yugi had not really thought possible.

"Yugi, you've reminded me of something I must attend to." He growled in impatience. "In four weeks time we will meet here again– and if you don't there will be severe consequences." To Yugi's surprise the Dragonkeeper picked up his deck, sifting through it until he found a particular card. When he found it he held it on top of the deck and with one hand took off the crystal. Yami and Yugi watched in helpless silence as he raised the crystal overhead before bringing it down on the top card with a earthshaking crash. A cloud of dust exploded, and when it cleared and the two could see, the Dragonkeeper was sitting astride a dragon, one Yugi recognized from the cards. "A Koumori Dragon," he whispered in awe. The Dragonkeeper kicked it into flight, calling back to Yugi, "FOUR WEEKS! THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE!" The flapping wings kicked up more dust, stinging in Yugi's eyes until it settled again. When it did, all signs of the Dragonkeeper and his living, breathing Koumori Dragon were gone.

Yugi almost decided to bail on the trip to Egypt, but his grandfather and Yami coaxed him into it. A week after the almost-duel with Rian he and his grandfather were in a plane to the Suez region. The flight was uneventful– other than Yami whispering into Yugi's mind ear that he could not believe that he was actually thousands of feet above water and land, his people would never have attempted to build something as ridiculous as a giant metal bird, etc. Yugi finally tuned him out, yet again sifting through his deck aimlessly.

The second day of the trip Yugi decided to go walking by himself along the streets of Suez city. He was on the outskirts when he heard a rough voice shouting in Japanese. He didn't hear or understand much of it, but he did get: "Please, Help me! I'm trapped– please help!" As Yugi raced off after the owner of the voice Yami sighed. _Leave it to Yugi to worry about some stranger..._

Finally Yugi reached a locked door behind which sounded to be the source of the cries. As he fished for a knife or a pin to pick the lock he heard the cries fade before finally giving out. At this point Yugi shoved a bobby pin into the lock as he shouted through the door: "Just a moment, I'm coming to help! Just hold on!" He rammed the pin into the lock repeatedly until he heard the comforting sound of tumblers falling into place. He turned the knob and entered the building, at first seeing only a torch on the wall shedding greasy light into the small room. There appeared to be no other doors and a window only open wide enough for a tiny amount of air to come through. Yugi had scanned the room before spying a lanky brunette lying on the floor unconscious. Yugi rushed over to him and picked him up, and at the movement the man woke, opening his eyes groggily.

When he did, Yugi's breath caught in his throat.

A moment that lasted an eternity. Later Yugi would decide that was the best way to describe the feeling he had when he looked into the man's eyes. They were ice blue, and Yugi immediately thought of the White Dragon Duel Monsters cards. The thought scared him– in the sense that he knew Kaiba was dead. He _knew_ it. There was no way it could be otherwise. The investigators had found the body, hadn't they? Mokuba had said it himself, he was gone. So what were the chances Yugi would free a man that looked almost exactly like him? Yugi dragged his gaze from the man's eyes after a while to take in his condition, and he gasped. At the same time the annoyingly reasonable part of his brain was saying: _You wouldn't even be able to tell if it wasn't Kaiba, the condition he's in._

He surveyed the older man, his amethyst eyes taking in recent cuts and swelling bruises. The man's face could hardly be identified, masked as it was by dried blood and bruises. The man's hair was a brown mass, yet giving hints that it had once been very well-groomed. His sapphire eyes were dull and held a seemingly permanent pained expression. His face, other than the cuts and bruises, was thin and pale. The sides of his hands were raw and bleeding from pounding on the door, and rope burns and indentations were around his wrist. His silk clothes were torn and ripped, and stained with blood and dirt. Yugi realized that it couldn't be Kaiba, as the Duel Monsters card designed locket Kaiba wore around his neck wasn't around this man's neck. Yugi's thoughts were halted however, when he noticed that the man's breathing was hard and labored, and at odd moments he gasped for breath –or in pain, Yugi wasn't sure.

"It's okay," he murmured, "I want to help. You'll be okay."

Yugi tried to pull him to his feet and he almost immediately fell back down again. Three tries and he was standing, but he was bowed over as if his back was hurting him. Yugi tried to get him to walk out into the afternoon sun so he could see him more clearly. The man walked slowly, and limped badly, making Yugi think his leg had been broken. As he walked one hand was clutched to his side, and it worried the shorter man. It took the better part of an hour to get the man to the hotel, mainly because of numerous stops they made to rest. When they finally did get back, Yugi laid the man down on a bed and ran to fetch a first-aid kit. Surprisingly, Yami had said nothing from the time that Yugi had picked the lock till reaching the hotel.

_How do you know the man isn't faking it? He could be waiting to rob us blind when our back is turned._

_You know what your problem is?_ Yugi snapped bitterly. _You don't trust people._

If Yugi had truly been himself, he would have noticed that he had really hurt Yami. Yami retreated into the depths of the puzzle, a look of hurt on his ghostly face that Yugi should have been able to feel. All the same, Yugi ignored the scarlet-eyed spirit as he dealt with the less complicated wounds. He decided to call the man Seleman, at least until the man was slightly more conscious and could tell him more. He murmured soothing words to Seleman as he cleaned the cuts with antiseptics and applied ice to the worst bruises. _He must really be out of it_, he thought, as Seleman didn't even flinch as he applied the stinging liquids. Yugi surveyed the man again, noticing happily that the cuts were rapidly healing and the worst swelling was going down. That still left the issue of his leg and his side, which the man still had one hand clutched against. He wasn't really sure what to do, he didn't know where the hospital was.

At that moment his grandfather came into the hotel room, calling out "Yugi? You here?"

"In the bedroom!"

Within a moment the senior Moto was in the room, asking Yugi, "How was your– Yaah!" Yugi turned to look at his grandfather. "He was locked in a building in town. I got him out and fixed him up a bit, but there's something wrong with his leg and his side. Can you help?" The older Moto listened, one hand over his heart and trying to get his breath back. "Whew... I think I can help. I'll call the hospital and see if they can send someone over." He left the room to find the phone, leaving Yugi holding Seleman's hand and whispering, "See? Everything'll be fine. I promise."

Yugi's grandfather came back into the room a little bit later. "They're sending someone over right away. A doctor will be over I'd say in no more than a half-hour." Yugi sighed gratefully. "Oh good." He looked over at his new friend, smiling at the sight of the tall man flat on the bed, dozing lightly. He giggled and stood, intending to get a drink of water from the kitchenette in the room. He mumbled something to his grandfather as he passed, but just before he was out the door his knees buckled and he fell backwards. For a brief instant fear entered his mind but he fell back only six inches before two arms came into contact with his back. He looked up at his grandfather's smiling eyes and tried to grin back through a large yawn. "Tired you out, eh?" the older man asked. Through yet another yawn the short dueling prodigy nodded. The two short men walked over to the other bed, Yugi stumbling slightly as he was laid down. As his grandfather left to fetch the water he had meant to get Yugi somehow removed his boots and the blue jacket he was wearing and the leather collar until he wore only the blue uniform pants and a black sleeveless shirt. Half-asleep he wriggled under the sheets, throwing back the quilt so he wouldn't get too hot. By the time his gramps returned with the water he was fast asleep.

Yugi raced through the complex passageways of the interior of the puzzle, calling out only one word. "Yami? Yami!" He raced past staircase after staircase, not getting anywhere. He slid to a stop before one door and tried the handle, only to discover a dark empty room. With a cry of frustration he was off again, finally deciding on another door not far from the first. When he opened it a blast of sound came from through the doorway; he almost thought his eardrums would burst. He shut the door almost immediately. Finally he saw at the end of the hallway a tall form, spiked hair casting a bizarre shadow on the ground behind him. "Yami!" Yugi cried as he raced towards the man. But for each step he came closer Yami was further away. Yugi sprinted faster, desperately needing to reach the man– the one who could virtually be his twin. "YAMI!" he cried again, the other now accelerated, moving faster away until Yugi couldn't see him at all. Yugi fell forwards to his knees, his head bowed. "Yami..." he whispered as a tear leaked from his eyes.

Yugi sat up in bed with a cry. "NO, YAMI!" As he looked around the room, panting, in confusion he realized where he was and that it was just a dream. One hand reached up to his chest, and he found his black shirt to be soaked through with sweat and sticking to his thin frame. The fingers then crept up to his face, no longer under his control, and they wiped some cold sweat from his forehead. "What was that...?" he mumbled as he looked over and realized thankfully that Seleman had slept through his outburst. His grandfather had apparently left, but it seemed the doctor had been there for the man's leg was splinted and bandaged. Yugi crawled out of the bed, staggering towards the bathroom, thinking to take a shower to wind down. As the warm water ran down his back he thought back to the dream. _Why wouldn't Yami stop? Why was he ignoring me?_ When it got too depressing he stopped thinking about it, turning his speculation to Seleman. _What was his name? Where did he come from? More importantly, why was he locked in that room, and why had he been tied up and beaten?_

Yugi slipped back into the bedroom, his towel wrapped around his waist and his hair lying against his back. As he slipped into a pair of jeans Seleman woke up. He didn't say anything at first, just rubbed his eyes. Yugi realized that he hadn't said a word since he found him. He had been screaming just fine for help, but hadn't said anything since he woke up in Yugi's arms. As such, Yugi was even more shocked when the man whispered, "Yugi?" The voice was low and rough, yet musical. The man's voice was also hoarse, Yugi guessed that was from the screaming. He whirled around and stared at the man. "You know me?" The man merely stared, saying "The other man called you Yugi... that is your name, isn't it?" Yugi sighed, why he didn't know. "Oh, yes. It's Yugi." Yugi wondered where the man had learned to speak so... politely. Yugi started to turn away again to pull a on shirt the man spoke again. "I dreamed..." he started hesitantly. Yugi turned around, wondering what made the man sound so darn scared. He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, his shirt still held in one hand. "What about?" he said quietly.

The man's gaze focused in his lap as he spoke. "I don't remember all of it, but there was a little boy, calling for someone. He kept shouting 'Where are you?!' I walked towards him, and he glanced at me and cried out 'Seto you're okay!' He jumped towards me and hugged me. Even though I have no idea who he was, I knew him within the dream and I hugged him back." As he spoke he missed Yugi's nervous gulp. "W-What did the boy look like?" Yugi asked. Seleman didn't look up. "He had long black hair– and he wore an orange and white striped shirt. He had grey eyes, and he wore a vest." This time he didn't miss the nervous swallow. "What is it?" Yugi looked away.

_It can't be. It just can't._

"Yugi?"

_Can it?_

"Yugi?"

_He's dead! He shouldn't be showing up in Egypt..._

"Yugi!"

He didn't face the man. "What's your name?" he whispered. Even thought he wasn't looking at the man he could tell he was thinking _'Huh?'_ "I just want to know," Yugi whispered. The man looked down. "It's– It's Seto." Yugi's reaction to his answer was something Seto did not expect. "NOOOO!" Yugi cried as he stood and tore out of the bedroom as fast as he could. "THAT'S NOT POSSIBLE!" Seto gave him a minute, then sat up slowly, reaching for the crutches the doctor had left as soon as he was upright. He limped out of the room, looking for Yugi. He saw him standing against the sliding glass door, fists raised above his head and against the glass. "Yugi?" Seto whispered. "Nooooo..." Yugi moaned as he slid down the glass to his knees, his fisted hands leaving streaks as he kneeled down. "What's wrong?" Seto said quietly, raising in volume– but not too much.

"You can't be Seto. Seto's dead."

_What?_

"What do you mean? I'm afraid I don't understand."

Yugi turned, his eyes rimmed in red and tears falling down his face. "You can't be Seto! Seto was murdered!"

"I what?" Seto said, fear creeping into his voice.

As Yugi spoke he walked forwards. "And if you are Seto Kaiba, then you've done a terrible thing."

"I have?"

"You promised Mokuba that you'd never leave him. Never." The word came out like a hiss. "But you did. You did leave, forcing him to believe that you were dead. I don't know why you've done this and I don't really care, but you disgust me. I mean it. Where's your locket? Hmm?"

Seto looked down. "What?"

"The Duel Monsters card locket that holds a picture of your little brother Mokuba. Where is it? You never go anywhere without it. _Your soul was locked in a card_, but you still had it. You 'never stopped thinking about him,' remember?"

Seto's hand was on his collarbone, remembering. "I-I remember now... but what am I doing here?"

"That's what I was about to ask you. You jerk. Look." He held up a picture of the younger Kaiba, a picture that he had taken when he was asleep in the Game Shop. Seto took it, gazing at it, first in confusion, but it soon changed to fondness. "I remember..." he whispered. In a flash the memories came flooding back to him.

_He had been walking down an alley with Rian, a boy from school. Rian asked him about his white dragons, wondering if he still had all of them. "Sure, why?" he mumbled. "Oh, no reason." Rian said. Kaiba's mind turned to the work he still had to do, and wondering what his pre-teen little brother was doing. Rian led him into a dark alleyway, but Seto didn't make much of it, his thoughts were still on KaibaCORP._

"_Augh!" he cried, as he suddenly found his back against the damp stone, the cold barrel of a gun pressed into his neck, just below his jaw. Furious, Seto almost tried to punch the other teen's lights out. However, since Rian was the one with the gun, he thought better of it. "Why, Rian?" The fiery-headed teen merely scowled, pressing the gun in tighter. Seto made a strange choking noise as the barrel bit into his windpipe. One-handed, Rian looped a rope around Seto's hands, tightening a previously tied slip knot until the rope began to dig into his wrists. Seto gasped as the ropes tightened. He groaned, not bothering to fight the boy. Still, as the rope tightened to unbearable levels he tried to regain his signature 'Kaiba' attitude. "You'll pay for this betrayal Rian. You will. I'll track you down–" He paused and growled as Rian went into his deck pouch, removing the five White Dragon cards. "What do you think you're doing?" he cried, trying to lash out or kick the boy in the leg. Rian looked up at him, his blue eyes tinted with black and flashing with hatred. His voice was deep and rough, and laced with rage. "You're annoying me Kaiba..." Seto gnashed his teeth, growling in fury. Rian did something just beyond his vision, and with a lightning-quick, fluid motion a cloth was pressed against his nose and mouth. Rian smiled as a groan filtered through the cloth and as Seto roared his annoyance, trying to fight the narcotics. A moment passed and Seto felt the world growing dark; haze filter over his eyes. Rian laughed evilly as Seto's eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped to the ground._

He looked up at Yugi when his flashback ended. To Yugi's surprise, in that moment he regained much of the Kaiba attitude. Even more to his surprise, Seto growled, a low grating sound that scared the hell out of the shorter man. "What do you know about Rian?" he growled, keeping his rage in check –barely. "R-Rian?" Yugi couldn't keep the shock from his face. Kaiba nearly roared in frustration. "Yes! Rian! You remember him, don't you?" Yugi's jaw nearly dropped. "What does Rian have to do with this?"

"He... stole... my dragons."

Yugi could almost swear a lightbulb went on over his head. "Oh my gods..." he mumbled, staggering backwards and falling into a chair. "It all makes sense now."

"WHAT MAKES SENSE?!" Yugi looked up at him, wishing Yami would come out and help, he'd always had better luck dealing with Kaiba. For a moment Yugi closed his eyes.

_Yami? Are you there?_

Yugi nearly gasped at the emptiness he felt, a closure on the other end of their link. Suddenly a wave of anger and terror rolled down the link, nearly drowning Yugi. He numbly waved at Kaiba to sit, mumbling "I'll explain later... just give me a couple minutes."

_Yami?_

When he got no answer he shouted aloud, crying "YAMI!"


End file.
